Executive Assistant Jobs in Houston, TX
Executive assistants in Houston earn a median of $35.99 an hour, about $74,850 a year, and some of the steadiest openings sit in the Texas Medical Center, where MD Anderson and Houston Methodist hire assistants for department chairs and senior leaders. Here are the current openings, then who is hiring and what it pays.
Current executive assistant Openings in Houston, TX
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Executive Assistant Work in Houston
Houston has always had a deep bench of executive assistants because it has always had a deep bench of executives: energy headquarters downtown and along the Energy Corridor on the Katy Freeway, law and finance in the downtown towers, and corporate offices in Uptown and Greenway Plaza. What has changed is where the hiring is steady. The Greater Houston Partnership's 2026 forecast expects administrative support services to contract along with oil and gas extraction, while health care adds nearly half of the region's new jobs. For an executive assistant, that points to the Med Center, where a single academic department can carry its own chair's office and its own assistant.
You can see it on the job boards. MD Anderson posts executive assistant roles by department on Holcombe Blvd, Houston Methodist hires for its specialty physician group on Fannin St and for corporate leadership at its Holly Hall St offices south of the Loop, and staffing firms fill temporary executive support in Pasadena and across the metro. Houston pays slightly above the Texas median for this job, $35.99 an hour against $34.61 statewide.
Top Houston Employers Hiring Executive Assistants
These Houston employers had executive assistant roles on their own careers sites this month:
- MD Anderson Cancer Center - the cancer center hires executive assistants for department chairs and clinical departments in the Texas Medical Center.
- Houston Methodist - the eight-hospital system hires executive and senior executive assistants for its physician groups, hospitals and corporate offices.
- University of Houston - the Third Ward university posts executive assistant and executive administrative assistant roles, including in its College of Medicine.
- Robert Half - the staffing firm places temporary and permanent executive assistants across the metro, including a current temporary role in Pasadena.
Executive Assistant Salaries in Houston
- Entry level: about $50,000 to $60,000 a year for a first executive assistant role, usually after several years as an administrative assistant.
- Experienced: roughly $65,000 to $85,000 a year supporting a department head or vice president.
- Senior and C-suite: $90,000 to $105,000 or more supporting a chief executive or a senior leadership team.
These are estimates built from federal wage data for the Houston metro and current local postings. Recent MD Anderson postings ranged from $44,800 to $79,000 depending on the role, and temporary executive assistant work through Houston staffing firms is running about $30 to $35 an hour. Pay rises with the seniority of the person you support, with years of experience and with a bachelor's degree. MD Anderson's executive assistant roles have been posted as non-exempt, so overtime is paid when calendars run late.
How to Become an Executive Assistant in Houston
There is no Texas state license for executive assistants, so experience is the real gate. Houston Methodist and MD Anderson both list a high school diploma as the minimum, then ask for about five or six years supporting executives, and MD Anderson accepts two years if you hold a bachelor's degree. Most people get there by starting as an administrative assistant. Houston City College offers a Business Technology degree and certificate in General Office Administration at all of its campuses and online, and Lone Star College-Montgomery runs a fast-track Administrative Assistant Certificate that prepares you for the IAAP Certified Administrative Professional exam. Some executives want a notary on staff; notary commissions are issued by the Texas Secretary of State.
What the Job Involves
Executive assistants run the working life of one or more senior leaders. The day is built around a calendar that changes by the hour: scheduling and rescheduling meetings, booking domestic and international travel, preparing agendas and board materials, drafting letters and emails in the executive's voice, processing expense reports, and screening calls and visitors. The job also means handling confidential personnel, patient or financial information and keeping projects moving when the executive is out of the office.
Skills Employers Look For
- Complex calendar management across several executives
- Advanced Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint
- Travel and event coordination
- Clear, polished business writing
- Discretion with confidential information
- Judgment to set priorities without being told
- Expense reporting and basic budget tracking
Career Path and Advancement
In Houston's health systems the ladder is written into the job titles: administrative assistant, senior administrative assistant, executive assistant, then senior executive assistant supporting corporate leadership. From there, experienced assistants move into chief of staff, office manager and executive business partner roles, or into operations and project coordination. Supporting a department chair in the Med Center or a senior leader downtown is the usual step that opens the C-suite roles.
Related Careers in Houston
If executive support interests you, these Houston guides cover the roles around it:
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a license to be an executive assistant in Houston?
No. Texas does not license executive assistants. Employers look at your years supporting executives, your software skills and sometimes a degree. The IAAP Certified Administrative Professional credential and a Texas notary commission are optional extras that some employers like.
How much do executive assistants make in Houston?
Federal wage data puts the Houston median at $35.99 an hour, about $74,850 a year. The lowest-paid tenth earn under about $51,500, and the top tenth earn over about $105,000. Supporting a chief executive pays the most.
How much experience do Houston employers want?
Usually about five years. Houston Methodist asks for five years of secretarial experience with three supporting senior management for some roles, and MD Anderson asks for six years, or two with a bachelor's degree. Starting as an administrative assistant is the normal route in.
Are executive assistant jobs in Houston remote?
Mostly not, since the job follows the executive's day. MD Anderson's recent dermatology posting was 100 percent on site. Some corporate roles are hybrid, such as Houston Methodist's senior executive assistant post at its Holly Hall St offices.
Do executive assistants in Houston get overtime?
Sometimes. MD Anderson has posted its executive assistant roles as non-exempt, which means overtime is paid at time-and-a-half when the week runs past 40 hours. Check the posting, since salaried exempt roles do not pay it.
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